Greens Leader Christine Milne says some of the Labor leadership ''shenanigans'' of the past three years have rubbed off on the Greens, as her party assesses a nationwide swing against it of more than 3 per cent.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
In Senator Milne's first election since taking over the leadership from Bob Brown, the Greens have recorded an ambiguous result, picking up a new senator in Victoria with Janet Rice but seeing a drop in its primary vote from 11.8 per cent in the 2010 election to about 8.4 per cent.
The party was able to celebrate the re-election of deputy leader Adam Bandt in the lower house seat of Melbourne and the expected re-election of South Australian senator Sarah Hanson-Young.
''This is a great victory for people in Melbourne and right across the country who want politics to be about reaching for new heights, not racing to the bottom,'' Mr Bandt said on Sunday.
Senator Milne said her party had been running against a ''tide'' of support for the ''conservatives'' during the campaign.
''We recognise that there are some people who are disappointed by all of the shenanigans in the Labor Party and that some of that has rubbed off on the Greens, there's no doubt about that.''
Senator Milne also explained the Greens lower vote by noting that it did not have the same ''major'' political donation it had in 2010, which hampered the party's ability to run TV advertising. But she said the party had an ''incredible story'' to tell about this election.
''This is quite an extraordinary thing in terms of the number of people who will be sitting on benches in Canberra [for the] Greens. We'll have more than we had before,'' she said.
As it sits, the Greens will have one lower house MP and at least nine senators in the Parliament.
The Greens are still in the hunt for senate seats in Western Australia - where Scott Ludlam is fighting to hang on to his spot - and in the ACT, where Simon Sheikh was locked in a close battle with Liberal Party candidate Zed Seselja as of Sunday night.
NSW senate candidate Cate Faehrmann indicated she was also still hopeful, posting on Twitter that she was ''trailing Lib for 6th spot. Weeks till we know''.
Amid questions about the Greens performance, Senator Milne and Mr Bandt laughed off suggestions that he might contest the Greens leadership.
The Greens automatically spill its parliamentary leadership positions following an election, but there is no serious suggestion that the existing leadership arrangement will change.
Senator Hanson-Young said on Sunday that she did not intend to put her hand up for a position - despite previously nominating for a spot.
''I'm really happy to be supporting Christine and Adam as the leadership team,'' she said.
With Bianca Hall and AAP
